SOCCER
China detains SK player
A South Korean citizen, whom Seoul identified as soccer player Son Jun-ho, has been detained by the Liaoning Province Public Security Department, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. Son, who was detained on Friday, is being held in police custody in northeast China in connection with a bribery case, a South Korean diplomatic source said on Monday. Son plays for the South Korean national team and Chinese Super League club Shandong Taishan, based in Shandong Province. The South Korean Ministry Of Foreign Affairs said its mission in China was providing necessary consular support to Son, but declined to comment further, citing privacy. A Korea Football Association official said it had reached out to Shandong Taishan, seeking an explanation, but has not heard back.
CYCLING
Thomas’ luck changes
Geraint Thomas said he is relishing the opportunity to win the Giro d’Italia after inheriting the leader’s maglia rosa jersey following Remco Evenepoel’s withdrawal. World champion Evenepoel abandoned the Giro with COVID-19 on Sunday, shortly after the Belgian reclaimed top spot in the general classification with victory in a rain-affected 35km individual time trial. Thomas has enjoyed little luck at the Giro, but the 36-year-old said he is keen to improve his results. The Welshman pulled out of the Giro in 2020 after suffering a hip fracture in a crash. Three years earlier his race came to an end after he damaged his shoulder in a pile-up involving a police motorbike. “It would be amazing to win, especially after 2020 when I thought that was it for my chance to win the Giro,” Thomas said. “I don’t feel much pressure or expectation, but I’d love to take this opportunity.” Monday was a rest day.
RUGBY LEAGUE
NZ aims to host World Cup
The New Zealand Rugby League yesterday said that it was in talks to jointly host the 2025 Rugby World Cup with Australia after France pulled out over financial concerns. The 17th staging of the World Cup for the 13-a-side code was scheduled for October to November 2025, but France on Monday said that a lack of funding meant hosting the tournament carried unacceptable financial risk. The game’s governing body, the International Rugby League, called the move “very disappointing.” New Zealand Rugby League CEO Greg Peters said they were interested in staging the event and have already discussed cohosting with Australia.
SOCCER
Women’s final sold out
The Women’s UEFA Champions League final next month is sold out for the first time in the competition’s recent history. UEFA yesterday said that no previous final had fully sold out since the 2009-2010 season, when its Women’s Cup was rebranded as the Women’s Champions League. More than 34,100 tickets have been issued for the match, which is to be played at the Philips Stadion in Eidhoven, Netherlands, on June 3, UEFA said. The final would beat the attendance record for a women’s soccer match in the Netherlands, previously set in 2019 when the Netherlands national team played Australia in front of 30,640 spectators at the same venue.
The qualifying round of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) is to be held at the Taipei Dome between Feb. 21 and 25, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced today. Taiwan’s group also includes Spain, Nicaragua and South Africa, with two of the four teams advancing onto the 2026 WBC. Taiwan, currently ranked second in the world in the World Baseball Softball Confederation rankings, are favorites to come out of the group, the MLB said in an article announcing the matchups. Last year, Taiwan finished in a five-way tie in their group with two wins and two losses, but finished last on tiebreakers after giving
North Korea’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup-winning team on Saturday received a heroes’ welcome back in the capital, Pyongyang, with hundreds of people on the streets to celebrate their success. They had defeated Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the U17 World Cup final in the Dominican Republic on Nov. 3. It was the second global title in two months for secretive North Korea — largely closed off to the outside world; they also lifted the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in September. Officials and players’ families gathered at Pyongyang International Airport to wave flowers and North Korea flags as the
For King Faisal, a 20-year-old winger from Ghana, the invitation to move to Brazil to play soccer “was a dream.” “I believed when I came here, it would help me change the life of my family and many other people,” he said in Sao Paulo. For the past year and a half, he has been playing on the under-20s squad for Sao Paulo FC, one of South America’s most prominent clubs. He and a small number of other Africans are tearing across pitches in a country known as the biggest producer and exporter of soccer stars in the world, from Pele to Neymar. For
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book
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